Gabriel Salazar (known as @gabenotbabe to his 2.2 million TikTok followers) has died at just 19 years old.
According to statements from the Texas Highway Patrol and Zavala County Sheriff’s Office, He was the driver convoluted in a police chase on Sunday, Sept. 26, which caused a deadly car crash that killed himself and three passengers.
Authorities stated that Salazar was driving a 2014 Chevrolet Camaro north on US Highway 83 near La Pryor, Texas, around 1:25 a.m.
According to the Sheriff’s Office statement, a deputy overheard a Crystal City Police Department officer pledged a traffic stop.
The officer then stated that he was in “active pursuit” of a white Chevy Camaro.
The deputy tried to help organize a “tire deflation device,” but was “unsuccessful,” according to the department. The deputy said he later heard a CCPD officer’s advice that “the vehicle had rolled over and that it was fully engulfed in flames.”
Texas Highway Patrol said in a statement, Salazar had driven off the road, over-corrected, and traveled across the roadway onto a gulley.
“The vehicle struck some trees, rolled several times, and the vehicle caught fire,” the authorities stated.
Salazar, who was from San Antonio, suffered “injuries” and was announced dead at the scene.
His passengers were also declared dead on-site, including Jose Luis Jimenez-Mora, 41, Jose Molina-Lara, 23, and Sergio Espinoza-Flores, 36. “All three passengers were Mexican Nationals,” according to the highway patrol.
“About the motor vehicle accident that occurred on Sunday, September 26, 2021, we have been notified by Homeland Security Investigations that 3 out of the 4 males that died as a result of the accident were identified as illegal immigrants from Mexico,” the Sheriff’s Office wrote on Sept. 29.
The Texas Department of Public Safety is investigating the crash, according to authorities.
A GoFundMe page has raised more than $38,000 for Salazar’s family.
“I don’t know what’s real and not real anymore,” the organizer wrote on the fundraiser. “We couldn’t believe it the moment we found out. Don’t want to get into details because it’s so hard for us to even talk about the pain he went through. Never expected this to happen but now you’re watching over us.”
Organizer Chris Vazquez shared, “Gabriel loved his family and was always horsing around with her sister and little brother. He was always there with a big hug and smile, and his family will never forget those warm moments. He was so funny with a quiet sense of humor and sarcasm.”